A national wildlife group is critical of the draft land-use plan for southern Alberta, suggesting it falls far short of protecting vulnerable wildlife and fish populations in the headwaters.

The plan, which was released last month and is in the midst of public input sessions, sets aside some land for new wildland parks and conservation areas in the Eastern Slopes of the Rockies. It was immediately criticized by conservation groups who suggested it doesn’t do enough to protect water and wildlife because it only conserves the mountain tops.

Based on a detailed assessment released Tuesday by the Wildlife Conservation Society Canada, the plan will hurt key species such as trout, grizzly bears and wolverines.

“The area they are proposing for protection is basically the rocks and ice,” said John Weaver, a senior scientist for the society. “They left out a lot of the important areas a little bit further down in those watersheds.

“They left out a lot of the valleys with the headwater streams that are critical spawning sites for bull trout and for westslope cutthroat trout.”

Both fish are already considered threatened, as is the grizzly bear.

Nikki Booth, spokeswoman for Alberta Environment and Sustainable Resource Development, said they are trying to balance the needs for development, recreation and conservation, but they continue to take comments as part of the public input process.

“That’s why this is a draft plan,” she said.

Booth said there are several new proposed conservation areas along the eastern slopes.

However, Weaver said the proposed plan will only establish 633 square kilometres of new wildland parks — or 25 per cent of what the society has dubbed the ‘headwater haven’ area.

As a result, Weaver said it would only protect a small portion of each species’ vital habitat: bull trout (2 per cent); westslope cutthroat trout (9 per cent); grizzly bear (17 per cent); wolverine (46 per cent); mountain goat (41 per cent); and, bighorn sheep (44 per cent).

Although it’s not bad for mountain goats or bighorn sheep, he said it’s not good for grizzly bears.

“It doesn’t protect a lot of the viable or riparian zones along the streams nor some of the upslope area,” said Weaver. “It’s not really taking a watershed view of these things.

“The current recommendations by government ... are protecting the spot where the first raindrop falls on the eastern side of the slopes. There’s a lot more of the headwaters that needs to be protected.”

He suggested the province would need to designate larger wildland parks or conservation areas with stronger standards to ensure protection.

In addition, it would need to protect the valleys of the upper Castle and West Castle River, as well as the headwater basins of the Carbondale, Oldman and Highwood Rivers.

The society will send the assessment to the province as part of the public input process into the land-use plan, which is also the subject of information sessions being held across Alberta.

Meetings continue this week, with one being held at the Glenmore Inn in Calgary on Wednesday and another at the Coast Lethbridge Hotel in Lethbridge on Thursday.

cderworiz@calgaryherald.com

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